In the history of art, the term “avant-garde” has a relatively broad meaning. It’s generally accepted that this term united several painting movements: cubism, primitivism, surrealism, etc. Most of the named artistic movements appeared in the early XX century. At that time, the art world had made a revolution: everyone’s favorite and understandable classics were relegated to the background. Then, suddenly came the authors who were struck with their originality, outlook and who were not afraid to defy the traditions. At that time, few people recognized their art, but decades later, the works of such artists caused an absolute sensation at auctions.
Kazimir Malevich
Kazimir Malevich became famous for his controversial work called “Black Square.” He experimented a lot, created in several directions of avant-garde art, tried his hand at modernist styles, and eventually went down in the history of art as the creator of suprematism. This genre is characterized by simple geometric shapes: circles, straight lines, rectangles, trapezoids, squares, and so on. These ideas were later used in architecture and industrial design. Malevich’s passion for futurism preceded the emergence of suprematism.
The painter said that the idea of the famous “Black Square” arose spontaneously. There is a mystical story connected with the creation of this painting, which is still the subject of so many discussions: a week before painting the avant-garde masterpiece, Malevich was seized by an inexplicable restlessness. He fell into prostration, could not sleep or eat, and painted the work himself on a stormy night when lightning flashed in the dark sky.
By the way, in addition to “Black Square,” he created several other works in the same style: “Black Circle” and “Black Cross.”
Salvador Dali
Salvador Dali became famous for his surrealist paintings. He was able to master a variety of painting styles, from cubism to neoclassicism. His first exhibition was at the age of 14, and at 17, Dali began studying at the San Fernando School of Fine Arts in Madrid, where he devoted himself to drawing and led a reclusive life. Salvador never attended student parties; he preferred museums to examine the ways famous artists painted. Despite his passion for painting, he was expelled from the school because his freedom-loving spirit was unbearably cramped within the walls of a classical educational institution. After that, Dali left for the rebellious Paris, where his main goal was to plunge into the world of avant-garde art.
As we can see, he succeeded in achieving his goal and did it with tremendous success. His paintings are in crazy demand, and works are purchased at great expense at auctions. Due to his avant-garde paintings and a talent for arranging surrealistic performances, Salvador Dali became one of the most expensive artists of that time. Dali left his entire fortune, which by the time of his death amounted to almost 10 million dollars, to the country he worshipped – his beloved Spain.
Richard Prince
Richard Prince is a modern American avant-garde artist who adopted Dali’s scandalized character. He has done a lot for advertising anti-propaganda, is not afraid to use other people’s photos in his works, taking them from a social network like Instagram. He was also engaged in polygraphy and creating book covers. One such series, known as “Nurse Paintings,” brought him international fame. In the “Nurse Paintings,” he used a dark, bloody background palette, so the angels of mercy appeared in a completely different guise.
In his art pieces, Richard emphasized the dark side of society, debunked ideas about morality, and discredited the advertising industry.
Zhang Xiaogang
Zhang Xiaogang is one of the most famous painters of our time, and his artworks are extremely popular on the global art market. The artist’s creative formation coincided with the Cultural Revolution, due to which he experienced such difficulties as the suppression of individuality, freedom of thought, and brutal repressions. However, politics are not a significant part of his work, and there are no calls and accusations in his avant-garde paintings. Xiaogang does not call for anything; the Chinese avant-garde artist is mainly concerned with psychological problems: why people aspire to live in an average world and suppress their individuality on purpose, why people are cruel to each other, and so forth… The unique feature of the artist is that he does not paint separate paintings; all his artworks are combined into series. The author is best known for his “Bloodline – Big Family” series.
Gerhard Richter
Gerhard Richter is one of the most expensive German avant-garde artists. He earned his popularity and fortune by selling his abstract works. One of his most famous paintings is called “Abstraktes Bild,” which was created in 1986, painted not with a brush but with a construction squeegee. This avant-garde masterpiece was sold at Sotheby’s auction for $27.6 million. Richter has many interesting works, but the artist himself did not consider them paintings; he called them “decorative works.”
His other famous works are “Red Blue Yellow,” “Meditation,” and “Double Gray.”
